Today in Judaism – Today is: Monday, 29
Kislev 5774 · 2 December 2013 - Chanukah 5
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Today’s Laws and Customs:
• Kindle Six Chanukah Lights tonight
In commemoration of the miracle of
Chanukah (see "Today in Jewish History" for Kislev 25) we kindle the
Chanukah lights -- oil lamps or candles -- each evening of the eight-day
festival, increasing the number of lights each evening. Tonight we kindle six
lights. (In the Jewish calendar, the day begins at nightfall; this evening,
then, commences the 6th day of Chanukah).
The icon below displays the ideal
Chanukah lighting time for your location; the lighting can be done, however,
later in the evening as well. For more on Chanukah lighting times, click here.
(If no time is displayed, click on icon to set your location.)
For a more detailed guide to Chanukah
lighting click here. For text and audio of the blessings recited before
lighting, click here.
Additional Chanukah observances and
customs are listed below:
• Hallel & Al HaNissim
Special prayers of thanksgiving -- Hallel
(in its full version) and Al HaNissim -- are added to the daily prayers and
Grace After Meals on all eight days of Chanukah. Tachnun (confession of sins)
and similar prayers are omitted for the duration of trhe festival.
• Latkes, Sufganiot & Dairy Foods
On Chanukah we eat foods fried in oil --
such as latkes (potato cakes) and sufganiot (doughnuts) -- in commemoration of
the miracle of the oil.
It is also customary to eat dairy foods
in commemoration of Judith's heroic deed.
• Dreidel
It is customary to play dreidel -- a game
played with a spinning top inscribed with the Hebrew letters Nun, Gimmel, Hei
and Shin, which spell the phrase Nes Gadol Hayah Sham, "a great miracle
happened there." (It is said that when the Greeks forbade the study of
Torah, Jewish children continued the study with their teachers in caves and
cellars; when the agents of the king were seen approaching, the children would
hide their scrolls and start to play with spinning tops...)
Links: About the dreidel
• Chanukah Gelt
It is an age-old custom to distribute
gifts of Chanukah gelt ("Chanukah money") to children on Chanukah. (It
was the custom of the rebbes of Chabad-Lubavitch to give Chanukah gelt to their
children and other family members on the fourth or fifth night of Chanukah;
more recently, however, the Lubavitcher Rebbe encouraged the giving of Chanukah
gelt every day of the festival -- except for Shabbat, when handling money is
forbidden.)
Today in Jewish History:
• 5th Day of Chanukah Miracle (139 BCE)
On the 25th of Kislev in the year 3622
from creation, the Maccabees liberated the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, after
defeating the vastly more numerous and powerful armies of the Syrian-Greek king
Antiochus IV, who had tried to forcefully uproot the beliefs and practices of
Judaism from the people of Israel. The victorious Jews repaired, cleansed and
rededicated the Temple to the service of G-d. But all the Temple's oil had been
defiled by the pagan invaders; when the Jews sought to light the Temple's
menorah (candelabra), they found only one small cruse of ritually pure olive
oil. Miraculously, the one-day supply burned for eight days, until new, pure
oil could be obtained. In commemoration, the Sages instituted the 8-day
festival of Chanukah, on which lights are kindled nightly to recall and
publicize the miracle.
Link: The Story of Chanukah
Daily Quote:
"Yom Kippur" also means "a
day like Purim"(Rabbi Isaac Luria ("The Holy Ari", 1534-1572))
Daily Study - Chitas and Rambam for
today: Parshat Vayigash, 2nd Portion (Genesis 44:31-45:7)
Chapter 44
31. it will come to pass, when he sees
that the boy is gone, he will die, and your servants will have brought down the
hoary head of your servant, our father, in grief to the grave. לא. וְהָיָה
כִּרְאוֹתוֹ כִּי אֵין הַנַּעַר וָמֵת וְהוֹרִידוּ עֲבָדֶיךָ אֶת שֵׂיבַת עַבְדְּךָ
אָבִינוּ בְּיָגוֹן שְׁאֹלָה:
it will come to pass, when he sees that
the boy is not here, he will die: His father will die because of his calamity
[of the loss of his son].
והיה כראותו כי אין הנער ומת: אביו מצרתו:
32. For your servant assumed
responsibility for the boy from my father, saying, 'If I do not bring him to
you, I will have sinned against my father forever.' לב. כִּי עַבְדְּךָ עָרַב
אֶת הַנַּעַר מֵעִם אָבִי לֵאמֹר אִם לֹא אֲבִיאֶנּוּ אֵלֶיךָ וְחָטָאתִי לְאָבִי כָּל
הַיָּמִים:
For your servant assumed responsibility
for the boy: Now if you ask why I enter the fray more than my other brothers,
[I will reply that] they are all [standing] from the outside [without
commitment], while I have bound myself with a strong bond to be an outcast in
both worlds. [From Gen. Rabbah 93:8]
כי עבדך ערב את הנער: ואם תאמר למה אני נכנס
לתגר יותר משאר אחי, הם כולם מבחוץ, אבל אני נתקשרתי בקשר חזק להיות מנודה בשני עולמות:
33. So now, please let your servant stay
instead of the boy as a slave to my lord, and may the boy go up with his
brothers. לג. וְעַתָּה יֵשֶׁב נָא עַבְדְּךָ תַּחַת הַנַּעַר עֶבֶד לַאדֹנִי וְהַנַּעַר
יַעַל עִם אֶחָיו:
please let your servant stay: I am
superior to him in all respects: in strength, in battle, and in service. [From
Gen. Rabbah 93:8]
ישב נא עבדך וגו': לכל דבר אני מעולה ממנו,
לגבורה, ולמלחמה, ולשמש:
34. For how will I go up to my father if
the boy is not with me? Let me not see the misery that will befall my
father!" לד. כִּי אֵיךְ אֶעֱלֶה אֶל אָבִי וְהַנַּעַר אֵינֶנּוּ אִתִּי פֶּן אֶרְאֶה
בָרָע אֲשֶׁר יִמְצָא אֶת אָבִי:
Chapter 45
1. Now Joseph could not bear all those
standing beside him, and he called out, "Take everyone away from me!"
So no one stood with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. א. וְלֹא
יָכֹל יוֹסֵף לְהִתְאַפֵּק לְכֹל הַנִּצָּבִים עָלָיו וַיִּקְרָא הוֹצִיאוּ כָל אִישׁ
מֵעָלָי וְלֹא עָמַד אִישׁ אִתּוֹ בְּהִתְוַדַּע יוֹסֵף אֶל אֶחָיו:
Now Joseph could not bear all those
standing: He could not bear that Egyptians would stand beside him and hear his
brothers being embarrassed when he would make himself known to them. [From
Tanchuma Vayigash 5]
ולא יכול יוסף להתאפק לכל הנצבים: לא היה יכול
לסבול שיהיו מצרים נצבים עליו ושומעין שאחיו מתביישין בהודעו להם:
2. And he wept out loud, so the Egyptians
heard, and the house of Pharaoh heard. ב. וַיִּתֵּן אֶת קֹלוֹ בִּבְכִי וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ
מִצְרַיִם וַיִּשְׁמַע בֵּית פַּרְעֹה:
and the house of Pharaoh heard: Heb. פַּרְעֹה
בֵּית, the house of Pharaoh, namely his servants and the members of his
household. This does not literally mean a house, but it is like “the house of
Israel” (Ps. 115:12), “the house of Judah” (I Kings 12:21), mesnede in Old
French, household. [From Targum Onkelos]
וישמע בית פרעה: ביתו של פרעה, כלומר עבדיו
ובני ביתו. ואין זה לשון בית ממש אלא כמו (תהלים קטו יב) בית ישראל, (מלכים א' יב כא)
בית יהודה מיישניד"א בלע"ז [בני הבית]:
3. And Joseph said to his brothers,
"I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?" but his brothers could not
answer him because they were startled by his presence. ג. וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹסֵף אֶל אֶחָיו
אֲנִי יוֹסֵף הַעוֹד אָבִי חָי וְלֹא יָכְלוּ אֶחָיו לַעֲנוֹת אֹתוֹ כִּי נִבְהֲלוּ
מִפָּנָיו:
they were startled by his presence:
Because of embarrassment. [From Tanchuma Vayigash 5]
נבהלו מפניו: מפני הבושה:
4. Then Joseph said to his brothers,
"Please come closer to me," and they drew closer. And he said,
"I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. ד. וַיֹּאמֶר
יוֹסֵף אֶל אֶחָיו גְּשׁוּ נָא אֵלַי וַיִּגָּשׁוּ וַיֹּאמֶר אֲנִי יוֹסֵף אֲחִיכֶם
אֲשֶׁר מְכַרְתֶּם אֹתִי מִצְרָיְמָה:
Please come closer: He saw them drawing
backwards. He said,“Now my brothers are embarrassed” (Tanchuma Vayigash 5). He
called them tenderly and pleadingly and showed them that he was circumcised
(Gen. Rabbah 93:10).
גשו נא אלי: ראה אותם נסוגים לאחוריהם, אמר
עכשיו אחי נכלמים, קרא להם בלשון רכה ותחנונים, והראה להם שהוא מהול:
5. But now do not be sad, and let it not
trouble you that you sold me here, for it was to preserve life that God sent me
before you. ה. וְעַתָּה | אַל תֵּעָצְבוּ וְאַל יִחַר בְּעֵינֵיכֶם כִּי מְכַרְתֶּם
אֹתִי הֵנָּה כִּי לְמִחְיָה שְׁלָחַנִי אֱלֹהִים לִפְנֵיכֶם:
to preserve life: Heb. לְמִחְיָה, to be
to you a preserver of life. [From Targum Jonathan]
למחיה: להיות לכם למחיה:
6. For already two years of famine [have
passed] in the midst of the land, and [for] another five years, there will be
neither plowing nor harvest. ו. כִּי זֶה שְׁנָתַיִם הָרָעָב בְּקֶרֶב הָאָרֶץ
וְעוֹד חָמֵשׁ שָׁנִים אֲשֶׁר אֵין חָרִישׁ וְקָצִיר:
For already two years of famine: have
passed of the [total] years of the famine.
כי זה שנתים הרעב: עברו משני הרעב:
7. And God sent me before you to make for
you a remnant in the land, and to preserve [it] for you for a great
deliverance. ז. וַיִּשְׁלָחֵנִי אֱלֹהִים לִפְנֵיכֶם לָשׂוּם לָכֶם שְׁאֵרִית בָּאָרֶץ
וּלְהַחֲיוֹת לָכֶם לִפְלֵיטָה גְּדֹלָה:
---
Daily Tehillim – Psalms Chapters 140-144
Chapter 140
David composed this psalm against his
slanderers, especially the chief conspirator Doeg. Anyone confronted by
slanderers should recite this psalm.
1. For the Conductor, a psalm by David.
2. Rescue me from the evil man, protect
me from the man of violence,
3. who devise evil schemes in their
heart; every day they gather for wars.
4. They sharpen their tongues like a
serpent; the spider's venom is forever under their lips.
5. Guard me, Lord, from the hands of the
wicked, protect me from the man of violence-those who plot to cause my steps to
slip.
6. Arrogant ones have hidden a snare for
me, and ropes; they spread a net by my path, they set traps for me continually.
7. I said to the Lord, "You are my
God!" Listen, O Lord, to the voice of my pleas.
8. God, my Lord, the strength of my
deliverance, You sheltered my head on the day of armed battle.
9. Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the
wicked; fulfill not his scheme, make it unattainable forever.
10. As for the head of my besiegers, let
the deceit of their own lips bury them.
11. Let burning coals fall upon them; let
it cast them down into the fire, into deep pits, never to rise again.
12. Let not the slanderous man be
established in the land; let the evil of the man of violence trap him until he
is overthrown.
13. I know that the Lord will execute
judgement for the poor, justice for the needy.
14. Indeed, the righteous will extol Your
Name; the upright will dwell in Your presence.
Chapter 141
This psalm teaches an important lesson:
One should pray for Divine assistance that his mouth not speak that which is not
in his heart. The gatekeeper only allows the gate to be opened for a purpose;
let it be the same with one's lips.
1. A psalm by David. O Lord, I have
called You, hasten to me; listen to my voice when I call to You.
2. Let my prayer be set forth as incense
before You, the raising of my hands as an afternoon offering.
3. O Lord, place a guard for my mouth,
keep watch over the door of my lips.
4. Do not incline my heart to a bad
thing-to perform deeds in wickedness, with men, doers of evil; let me not partake
of their delicacies.
5. Let the righteous one strike me with
kindness and let him rebuke me; like the finest oil, let my head not refuse it.
For as long [as I live], my prayer is [to preserve me] from their harm.
6. For their judges have slipped because
of their [hearts of] rock, though they heard my words and they were pleasant.
7. As one who chops and splinters [wood]
on the ground, so have our bones been scattered to the mouth of the grave.
8. For to You, God, my Lord, are my eyes;
in You I take shelter; do not pour out my soul.
9. Protect me from the hands of the snare
they laid for me, and from the traps of the evildoers.
10. Let the wicked fall into their own
nets together, until I pass over.
Chapter 142
David composed this psalm while hiding
from Saul in a cave, at which time he had cut off the corner of Saul's garment
(to prove that he was able to kill him but did not wish to do so). He declared,
"Where can I turn, and where can I run? All I have is to cry out to
You!"
1. A maskil1 by David, when he was in the
cave, a prayer.
2. With my voice I will cry out to the
Lord; with my voice I will call to the Lord in supplication.
3. I will pour out my plea before Him; I
will declare my distress in His presence.
4. When my spirit is faint within me, You
know my path. In the way in which I walk, they have hidden a snare for me.
5. Look to my right and see, there is
none that will know me; every escape is lost to me. No man cares for my soul.
6. I cried out to You, O Lord; I said,
"You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.”
7. Listen to my song of prayer, for I
have been brought very low. Deliver me from my pursuers, for they are too
mighty for me.
8. Release my soul from confinement, so
that it may acknowledge Your Name. Because of me, the righteous will crown
[You] when You will deal graciously with me.
Chapter 143
1. A psalm by David. O Lord, hear my
prayer, lend Your ear to my supplications. With Your faithfulness answer me,
and with Your righteousness.
2. Do not enter into judgment with Your
servant, for no living being would be vindicated before You.
3. For the enemy has pursued my soul; he
has crushed my life to the ground; he has set me down in dark places, like
those who are eternally dead.
4. Then my spirit became faint within me;
my heart was dismayed within me.
5. I remembered the days of old; I
meditated on all Your deeds; I spoke of Your handiwork.
6. I spread out my hands to You; like a
languishing land my soul yearns after You, Selah.
7. Answer me soon, O Lord, my spirit is
spent; hide not Your face from me, lest I become like those who descend into
the pit.
8. Let me hear Your kindness in the
morning, for have I trusted in You. Let me know the way in which I should walk,
for to You I have lifted my soul.
9. Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord. I
have concealed [my troubles from all, save] You.
10. Teach me to do Your will, for You are
my God. Let Your good spirit lead me in an even path.
11. For the sake of Your Name, O Lord,
give me life; in Your righteousness, take my soul out of distress.
12. And in Your kindness, cut off my
enemies and obliterate all those who oppress my soul, for I am Your servant.
Chapter 144
After triumphing in all his wars, David
composed this psalm in praise of God.
1. By David. Blessed be the Lord, my
Rock, Who trains my hands for battle and my fingers for war.
2. My source of kindness and my fortress,
my high tower and my rescuer, my shield, in Whom I take refuge; it is He Who
makes my people submit to me.
3. O Lord, what is man that You have
recognized him; the son of a mortal, that You are mindful of him?
4. Man is like a breath; his days are
like a passing shadow.
5. O Lord, incline Your heavens and
descend; touch the mountains and they will become vapor.
6. Flash one bolt of lightning and You
will scatter them; send out Your arrows and You will confound them.
7. Stretch forth Your hands from on high,
rescue me and deliver me out of many waters, from the hand of strangers,
8. whose mouth speaks deceit and whose
right hand is a right hand of falsehood.
9. God, I will sing a new song to You, I
will play to You upon a harp of ten strings.
10. He who gives victory to kings, He
will rescue David, His servant, from the evil sword.
11. Rescue me and deliver me from the
hand of strangers, whose mouth speaks deceit and whose right hand is a right
hand of falsehood.
12. For our sons are like plants, brought
up to manliness in their youth; our daughters are like cornerstones, fashioned
after the fashion of a palace.
13. Our storehouses are full, overflowing
with all manner of food; our sheep increase by the thousands, growing by the
tens of thousands in our open fields.
14. Our leaders bear the heaviest burden;
there is none who break through, nor is there bad report, nor outcry in our
streets.
15. Happy is the nation for whom this is
so. Happy is that nation whose God is the Lord.
---
Today's Tanya Lesson - Likutei Amarim,
beginning of Chapter 4
Monday, 29 Kislev 5774 / 2 December 2013
Likutei Amarim, beginning of Chapter 4
ועוד יש לכל נפש אלקית שלשה לבושים
In addition [to its ten faculties —
discussed in ch. 3], every divine soul (nefesh elokit) possesses three
garments.
The soul possesses three auxiliary
powers, which are its instruments of expression. Like garments, they can be
donned or shed at will. When the soul utilizes any of these three powers it is
“clothed” in them; when it does not use them, it is “divested” of them. Also,
just as garments give expression to their wearer’s beauty and importance, so,
too, when the soul dons and utilizes these “garments”, its intellect and
emotion find expression.
שהם מחשבה דבור ומעשה של תרי״ג מצות התורה
They (the garments) are: thought, speech
and action as they find expression in the 613 commandments of the Torah.
The Alter Rebbe now goes on to explain
how the divine soul expresses itself through these three garments.
שכשהאדם מקיים במעשה כל מצות מעשיות
For, when a person actively fulfills all
the precepts which require physical action (e.g., when he dons the tefillin or
fulfills the commandment of tzitzit, etc.),
ובדיבור הוא עוסק בפירוש כל תרי״ג מצות והלכותיהן
and with his power of speech he occupies
himself in expounding all the 613 commandments and the laws governing their
fulfillments,
i.e., the person’s speech is immersed in
the study of Torah which includes the exposition of the commandments. For
example, Tractate Berachot deals with the commandments and the laws of
blessings; Tractate Shabbat deals with the commandments and laws of Shabbat
observance, etc.,
ובמחשבה הוא משיג כל מה שאפשר לו להשיג בפרד״ס
התורה
and with his power of thought he
comprehends all that he is capable of understanding in the Pardes (i.e., the
four levels) of Torah,
The word Pardes (פרדס), whose literal
meaning is “orchard”, is here used as an acronym of the four Hebrew words,
Pshat, Remez, Derush and Sod, meaning, respectively: plain sense, intimation,
homiletical exposition and esoteric meaning — the four levels of Scriptural
interpretation.
הרי כללות תרי״ג אברי נפשו מלובשים בתרי״ג מצות
התורה
then all of his soul’s 613 “organs” are
clothed in the 613 commandments of the Torah.
Just as the human body consists of 248
organs and 365 blood vessels, corresponding to the Torah’s 248 positive
commandments and 365 prohibitive commandments (613 in all), the soul similarly
comprises 613 “organs” — the spiritual counterpart of the 613 bodily organs —
each “organ” corresponding to a specific commandment. When, through its three
“garments” (thought, speech and action), the soul embraces all 613
commandments, then all 613 “organs” of the soul are enclothed in all 613
commandments — each “organ” of the soul in
its related commandment.
(Note the Alter Rebbe’s emphasis of the
word “all” (“all the precepts which require physical action,” “in expounding
all the 613 commandments,” “all that he is capable of understanding”). Should
his “garments” fail to include all 613 commandments — were he to omit one
specific commandment — then the corresponding “organ” of the soul will remain
bereft of its mitzvah-“garment”.)
Thus we see, in a general sense, how
fulfillment of all the commandments with one’s thought, speech and action,
“clothes” the entire soul in all 613 commandments of the Torah. The Alter Rebbe
now goes on to specify which components of the soul are “clothed” by which particular garment.
---
Rambam - Daily Mitzvah - Sefer Hamitzvos:
N236
Negative Commandment 236
Borrowing with Interest
"You shall not give interest to your
brother"—Deuteronomy 23:20.
One may not take a loan – whether money
or any other item – from a fellow Jew if it involves payment of interest. Had
the Torah not specified this prohibition, we'd have thought that the
prohibition against loaning with interest lies only with the lender, but that
the borrower does not transgress (similar to the prohibition against
defrauding, where only the defrauder transgresses, not the defrauded).
In addition to this prohibition, the
borrower also transgresses the prohibition against "placing a stumbling
block in the path of a blind person."
Borrowing with Interest
Negative Commandment 236
Translated by Berel Bell
The 236th prohibition is that the
borrower is also forbidden from borrowing with interest.
If not for this prohibition on the
borrower to borrow with interest, one might think that only the lender
transgresses, since he is the wrongdoer; not the borrower, since he merely
allows himself to be overcharged. This would be similar to ona'a,1 which
applies only to the one who overcharges, not the one who pays. It was therefore
necessary to have a separate prohibition that the borrower shall not borrow
money with interest.
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement2
(exalted be He), "Do not deduct interest from your brother, whether it is
interest for money, interest for food,..."
The Oral Torah explains [that this phrase
should be read,] "Do not allow to be deducted from your brother..."
[therefore applying to the borrower, not the lender]. Our Sages stated
explicitly in tractate Bava Metzia: "A borrower transgresses 'Do not
deduct' and3 'Do not place a stumbling block before the blind,' " as
explained in our discussion of that mitzvah.4
FOOTNOTES
1. N250.
2. Deut.
23:20.
3. Lev.
19:14.
4. N299.
---
Rambam - 1 Chapter a Day: Metamme'ey
Mishkav uMoshav Chapter 4
Chapter 4
Halacha 1
There are four women who are impure only
from the time they discover uterine bleeding onward. They do not impart
impurity retroactively. They are: a woman who is pregnant, one who is nursing,
a maiden, or one who is elderly.
What is meant by a pregnant woman? A
woman whose pregnancy has become obvious. If she was considered as pregnant and
then experienced uterine bleeding and discharged a sack full of air or an
entity that is not considered as a fetus, her status continues without and she
is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding onward. If she
experienced uterine bleeding and directly afterwards, her pregnancy became
obvious, she becomes impure retroactively like other women.
What is meant by a woman who is nursing?
A woman within 24 months of childbirth, even if her child died within this
time, she weaned him, or gave him to a nursemaid, she is impure only from the
time bleeding is discovered. After 24 months, even if she continues to nurse,
she becomes impure retroactively like other women.
What is meant by the term "a
maiden"? A girl who has never menstruated, i.e., the intent is a maiden
with regard to menstruation and not a maiden with regard to hymeneal bleeding.
What is implied? Even if she was married and experienced uterine bleeding
because of marriage or she gave birth and experienced uterine bleeding because
of birth, she is still considered as a maiden with regard to the ruling that
she is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding onward.
What is meant by the term "elderly
woman"? A woman who did not menstruate for three months as she approached
advanced age. When is she considered elderly? When she is called an old woman
by others in her presence and she does not protest. If three 30-day intervals
pass and then she menstruates, another three 30-day intervals or more or less
pass, and she menstruates, she is considered like other women and imparts impurity
retroactively.
Halacha 2
When a girl menstruates for the first
time, even if her blood is flowing or dripping for all seven days, it is
considered as if she experienced bleeding once. If she experienced bleeding, it
stopped and then started again, it is considered as if she experienced bleeding
twice.
Halacha 3
When a young girl who had not yet reached
the age when she is expected to menstruate experiences uterine bleeding for the
first and second times, she is impure only from the time she discovers uterine
bleeding onward. If she experiences bleeding a third time, she imparts impurity
retroactively. If three months then pass without her menstruating and then she
menstruates, she is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding
onward. If three other months then pass without her menstruating and then she
menstruates, she is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding
onward. If three other months then pass without her menstruating and then she
menstruates, she is impure retroactively.
Halacha 4
When a young girl reaches the age when
she can be expected to menstruate and experiences uterine bleeding for the
first time, she is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding
onward. From the second occasion onward, she imparts impurity retroactively. If
three months then pass without her menstruating and then she menstruates, she
is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding onward. If three
other months then pass without her menstruating and then she menstruates, she
is impure retroactively.
Halacha 5
If a pregnant woman, one who is nursing
or elderly, or a girl who has never menstruated, but has reached the age when
that is likely experiences uterine bleeding once, she is impure only from the
time she discovers uterine bleeding onward. If such a woman experiences
bleeding a second time, she imparts impurity retroactively like all other
women, as explained. If, however, the first time she experienced bleeding, it
came because of external factors, she is impure only from the time she
discovers uterine bleeding onward, even if she experiences bleeding a second
time.
Halacha 6
When a pregnant or nursing woman
experienced uterine bleeding and then a three month interval passed before she
experienced bleeding again, she is impure only from the time she discovers
uterine bleeding onward. If another three months pass without her menstruating
and then she experiences uterine bleeding again, i.e., a third experience of
bleeding when counting the first, she imparts impurity retroactively.
When a woman experiences uterine bleeding
within 24 hours of experiencing "the bleeding of purity," she is
impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding onward.
Any woman about whom it is said,
"she is impure only from the time she discovers uterine bleeding
onward," must continuously inspect herself even though she imparts
impurity retroactively. All women who inspect themselves frequently are
praiseworthy, with the exception of a woman in the nidah state and a woman who
is granted "the bleeding of purity," for whom the inspections are of
no consequence whatsoever.
Halacha 7
The Sages ordained that Jewish women
should inspect themselves every day in the morning because of the pure articles
that they touched the previous evening and in the evening, because of the pure
articles they touched in the morning. Whenever a woman partakes of terumah, she
should inspect herself when she partakes of the terumah.
Every woman should inspect herself before
she is intimate with her husband, because she also inspects herself for the
sake of pure articles. If, however, she does not have to do with pure articles,
she need not inspect herself for the sake of intimacy with her husband. For
every woman who has a fixed time when she is expected to menstruate can operate
on the presumption that at other times, she is pure with regard to relations
with her husband, as we explained with regard to the laws of nidah.
Halacha 8
Jewish young girls who have not reached
puberty may operate under the assumption that they are pure. It is not
necessary that women inspect them. Once they reach puberty, they must undergo
an inspection and they should be inspected by mature women.
Halacha 9
When a woman who is a deafmute, an
intellectually or emotionally compromised woman, or one who lost control of her
mental faculties due to sickness has an intellectually capable woman who cares
for her, they may partake of terumah.
Halacha 10
Any garments stained with blood coming
from Jewish homes are assumed to be impure. Those coming from gentile homes are
considered to be pure. Those found in Jewish cities are considered to be pure.
For Jews are not suspected of casting away their bloodstained garments.
Instead, they are hidden away.
Accordingly, any bloodstained garments
that are discovered are considered as pure with the exception of those in holes
and around an impure room. In all instances, the impurity is only a decree,
imposed because of doubt, as we explained.
Halacha 11
Whenever a bloodstained garment is found,
it should be treated with seven detergent agents. Afterwards, whether or not
the stain is purged, the garment is immersed in a mikveh and then is deemed
pure.
The rationale is that if it is not purged
at all, it was a tint. If it was purged or its color faded, it is assumed to be
a bloodstain. Since it was treated with these seven detergents, the blood has
already been nullified even though a trace of it is still apparent. Even when a
stain definitely came from nidah bleeding, once it was treated with these seven
detergent agents, the blood is considered as nullified. The garment may be
immersed and then used in connection with ritually pure entities.
Halacha 12
When a bloodstain on a garment is no
longer detectable, the entire garment should be treated with the seven detergent
agents and then immersed.
The following laws apply when semen is no
longer detectable on a garment: If it the garment was new, it should be checked
with a needle. If the garment was worn, it should be inspected in the sun.
Halacha 13
The following laws apply when a garment
that was stained was immersed in the mikveh and then brought into contact with
ritually pure articles. If afterwards it was treated with the seven detergent
agents and was not purged, it is a tint. The ritually pure articles with which
it came into contact remain ritually pure and there is no need to immerse it
again. If the stain was purged or faded, it is a bloodstain. The pure articles
are impure, because the person was concerned with the stain as evidenced by his
removal of it. The garment must be immersed a second time to purify it.
Halacha 14
When a stain was treated with six of the
seven detergent agents and it was not purged and then it was treated with soap
and it was purged, the pure articles with which it came into contact contract
impurity. Although soap removes tints as well, since the garment was not
treated with all seven detergent agents, it is presumed that it was a
bloodstain and that, had the seventh agent been used, it would have been
purged.
If one treated a stained garment with all
seven detergent agents and the stain was not purged and then treated it with
them again and it was purged, but a trace remained, all of the pure articles
with which it came into contact between the first washing and the second
washing are pure. All of the pure articles with which it came into contact
after the second washing are impure. The rationale is that since he showed his
intent that he objects to any trace of the stain and desires to remove all
remnants of it, the garment is impure until all remnants are nullified and it
is immersed in a mikveh.
In Hilchot Issurei Bi'ah, we already
explained the seven detergent agents with which a stain is treated and how it
is treated with them.
Halacha 15
When a woman dies and afterwards
menstrual blood flows from her body, it imparts impurity to garments it stains.
The rationale is that the uterus is an impure place. Hence, even though the
blood flowed out after she died and the laws of nidah no longer apply, since it
emerged from an impure place, it imparts nidah impurity to garments it stains.
If it comprises a revi'it, it imparts impurity to everything under the same
shelter and it imparts impurity to garments it stains.
---
Rambam - 3 Chapters a Day: Malveh veLoveh
Chapter 19, Malveh veLoveh Chapter 20, Malveh veLoveh Chapter 21
Chapter 19
Halacha 1
When the court attaches the property of a
borrower to expropriate it, they should expropriate only land of intermediate
quality for a lender.
According to Scriptural Law, a creditor
should receive only the property of inferior quality, as implied by Deuteronomy
24:11: "You shall stand outside and the person who owes you the money
shall bring the security out to you." What is the tendency of a person to
bring out? The least valuable of his utensils. Our Sages, however, ordained
that a creditor could expropriate property of intermediate quality, so that people
would not refuse to give loans.
When does the above apply? When the
lender comes to collect from the borrower himself. If, however, the borrower
dies, and the lender comes to collect from his heirs - whether they are below
or above the age of majority -he may collect only property of inferior value.
Halacha 2
We do not collect payment from property
that has been sold, when the debtor owns property that is still in his
possession. [This applies even if the property in his possession is of inferior
quality, and the property that has been sold is of intermediate or superior
quality, and whether the property was sold or given away as presents.
If the property that has not been sold is
flooded, the creditor may collect the property that has been sold. The rationale
is that since it has been devastated, it is as if it no longer exists.
Halacha 3
The creditor is given the upper hand in
the following situation. Reuven sold all his fields to Shimon, and Shimon sold
one of his fields to Levi. If one of Reuven's creditors comes to expropriate
property in payment for his debt, he may expropriate property from either
Shimon or Levi.
When does the above apply? When Levi
purchased property of intermediate value. If, however, he purchased property
that was of superior or inferior value, the creditor cannot expropriate
property from Levi. For Levi will tell him: "I purposely took the trouble
of purchasing a field that you have no right to expropriate, so that you would
not have a claim against me." Similarly, if Levi purchased a field of
intermediate worth and left Shimon a field of intermediate worth similar to the
one of intermediate worth that he expropriated, the creditor cannot expropriate
the field from Levi, for he will tell the creditor: "I left you property
to expropriate as payment for your debt."
Halacha 4
We have already explained that payment
for damages should be expropriated from property of superior value, a lender
should expropriate property of intermediate value, and the money due a woman by
virtue of her ketubah should be expropriated from property of inferior value.
When a person owns only property of
superior value and property of inferior value, damages should be expropriated
from the property of superior value, and a lender and a woman collecting the
money due her by virtue of her ketubah should expropriate the property of
inferior value.
If he owns only property of superior
value and property of intermediate value, damages should be expropriated from
the property of superior value, and a lender and a woman collecting the money
due her by virtue of her ketubah should expropriate the property of
intermediate value.
If he owns only property of inferior
value and property of intermediate value, damages and payment for a loan should
be expropriated from the property of intermediate value, and a woman collecting
the money due her by virtue of her ketubah should expropriate the property of
inferior value.
Halacha 5
When a person owns three fields and he
sells them to three people at the same time, they all take the place of the
previous owner. Thus, payment for damages should be expropriated from property
of superior value, a lender should expropriate property of intermediate value
and the money due a woman by virtue of her ketubah should be expropriated from
property of inferior value.
If he sold them one after the other, they
should all expropriate their due from the last purchaser. If the worth of that
property was not sufficient, they should expropriate from the property
purchased before it. If the worth of that property was also not sufficient,
they should expropriate from the property purchased first.
This applies even if the last purchaser
acquired the property of inferior quality. For the purchaser who preceded him
can tell the person who seeks to expropriate property: "I left you
property from which you could collect your debt."
Halacha 6
When a debtor sells all of his properties
to one person, one after the other, that person takes the place of the original
owner.
When does the above apply? When he
purchased the property of superior quality last. When, however, he purchased
the property of inferior quality last, all the creditors must collect their due
from that property. For when a person comes to expropriate property, the
purchaser will tell him: "I left you property from which you can collect
your debt."
Why does the purchaser not tell this to a
person who seeks to expropriate the property when he purchased the property of
superior value first, and thus a woman collecting the money due her by virtue
of her ketubah and a lender would also expropriate their due from the property
of superior value? Because this possibility is an ordinance instituted for the
sake of the purchaser. And he will tell them: "I cannot accept this
ordinance." Instead, each type of creditor will collect from the property
fit for him.
Halacha 7
Similarly, the following laws apply when
the debtor sold all his properties to one person, one after the other, selling
him the property of superior value last, and that purchaser sold the property
of inferior and intermediate value to a third party and retained the property
of superior value for himself. All the debtors collect their due from the
property of superior value, for the purchaser does not have any property from
the original debtor to divert them to.
When the purchaser sold the property of
superior value and retained the properties of inferior and intermediate value,
payment for damages should be expropriated from property of superior value in
the possession of the second purchaser. The debt owed a lender and the money
due a woman by virtue of her ketubah should be expropriated from the property
of intermediate and inferior value that the first purchaser retained.
Halacha 8
As reflected in the following situation,
when a person limits his power to expropriate property, his waiver may extend
beyond his original intent: One person borrowed money from a colleague.
Afterwards, the borrower sold his property to two people each person purchasing
a portion for himself, one after the other. The creditor wrote to the second
purchaser, pledging that he would not expropriate the property as payment for
the debt and affirmed his commitment with a kinyan. Our Sages ruled that he is
also not able to expropriate the property sold to the first purchaser. For that
purchaser will say to the creditor: "I left you the opportunity of
collecting the money owed you from the debtor by expropriating the property
that the second purchaser bought after I did. You caused yourself a loss by
removing your lien on it."
Similar laws apply with regard to a woman
who seeks to collect the money due her by virtue of her ketubah. If she writes
such a waiver to the second purchaser, she loses the right to the money due her
by virtue of her ketubah and cannot expropriate property. If, however, such
persons write such a waiver to the first purchaser, they may expropriate the
property from the second purchaser.
The following situation can occur when a
borrower sells a field to a purchaser and then the purchaser sells it to a
second purchaser. The lender writes to the first purchaser, pledging that he
would not expropriate the property as payment for the debt and affirms his
commitment with a kinyan. The creditor may expropriate the property from the
second purchaser. The first purchaser may expropriate the property from the
creditor, because he pledged that he would not expropriate the property, and he
did. The second purchaser can then expropriate the property from the first
purchaser, because he sold it to him. The creditor may then expropriate the
property again from the second purchaser, and the cycle continues until they
arrange a compromise.
Similar laws apply with regard to a woman
who seeks to collect the money due her by virtue of her ketubah and makes a
pledge to the person who purchased her husband's property.
Chapter 20
Halacha 1
When a person owes many debts, the person
whose debt was made first has the right to expropriate property first - from
the borrower himself and from his creditors. If a later creditor expropriated
property before the first creditor, the first creditor may expropriate it from
him. For the person whose debt was established first acquires the property.
To what does the above apply? To landed
property that the borrower possessed at the time that he took the loan. When,
however, he purchased landed property after borrowing from many creditors, no
one is granted precedence over the others, even if the borrower wrote to each
one in the promissory note: "The property that I will purchase in the
future is on lien to you." Instead, all are equal, and whoever comes first
and expropriates the property acquires it, even if he was the last to make the
loan.
Halacha 2
When a borrower writes in the promissory
note: "What I will acquire in the future is on lien to you,"
afterwards purchases a field and then borrows from another person, the field is
on lien to the first lender. He has the right to expropriate it first. Similar
principles apply even if there are 100 creditors.
There is no concept of precedence with
regard to the expropriation of movable property. Instead, whoever comes first
and expropriates it acquires it, even if he was the last to make the loan.
If another person came and seized
possession of movable property belonging to this debtor in order to acquire the
property on behalf of one of the creditors, that person does not acquire the
property. The rationale is that a person who seizes property on behalf of a
creditor in a situation where a loss is caused to another person does not
acquire it. If, however, seizing it would not cause a loss to other people, he
does acquire it for him. Similarly, if the borrower tells him: "Acquire
this article on behalf of so-and-so," he acquires it for him. None of the
other creditors can expropriate this movable property, because another person has
already acquired it.
Halacha 3
When promissory notes are all dated on
the same date - or at the same hour, in a place where the hours are mentioned -
whichever creditor comes first and expropriates property, whether landed
property or movable property, acquires it.
Halacha 4
The ensuing laws apply when creditors
whose promissory notes are dated on the same date all come to expropriate
property together, or when creditors whose promissory notes were dated before
one another come to expropriate movable property, for there is no concept of
precedence with regard to movable property, or creditors come to expropriate
property that the borrower purchased after taking the loan dated last, and the
property the borrower possesses is not sufficient to enable each one to collect
the debt that is owed to them.
How is the property divided? If when the
property is divided in equal portions according to the number of creditors, the
person owed the least will receive the amount owed him or less, the property is
divided into that number of equal portions.
If dividing the property into equal
portions would give the person owed the least more than he is owed, this is
what should be done: We divide the sum equally among the creditors so that the
person owed the least will receive the money that he is owed. He then
withdraws. The remaining creditors then divide the balance of the debtor's resources
in the following manner.
What is implied? A person owed three
debts: one of a maneh, one for 200 and one for 300. If all the resources of the
debtor total 300 zuz, they are divided 100 for each. Similarly, if his
resources are less than 300, they should be divided equally among the three.
If his resources total more than 300 zuz,
the 300 should be divided equally and then the person owed 100 should withdraw.
The remaining money should be divided equally in this same manner.
What is implied? If the debtor's
resources total 500 or less, the 300 should be divided equally, and then the
person owed 100 should withdraw. The balance of 200 or less should then be
divided equally among the remaining creditors, and then the second one
withdraws.
If the debtor's resources total 600, the
300 should be divided equally, and then the person owed 100 should withdraw.
They then divide 200 between the two equally, and then the second one
withdraws. The 100 that remain should then be given to the person owed 300; he
thus receives only 300. The debtor's resources should be divided according to
this pattern even if there are 100 creditors, if they come to divide the
resources at the same time. There are, however, Geonim who rule that the
resources should be divided in proportion to the amount owed each creditor.
Halacha 5
The fact that a promissory note is not
dated correctly creates difficulties for its bearer. For example, Reuven and
Shimon each possess a promissory note, stating that Levi owes them money. The
promissory note possessed by Reuven is dated Nissan 5, and that possessed by
Shimon is dated Nissan, without specifying a day. Levi possesses only one field
that is not equal in value to the debts owed them both. Reuven is allowed to
take possession of the field, for perhaps the promissory note owed Shimon was
signed at the end of Nissan.
Similarly, Shimon cannot expropriate a
field that was sold by Levi from lyyar or afterwards. For the purchaser will
tell him: "Perhaps the date of your promissory note is the first of
Nissan. There is a field that was not sold at that time in the possession of
Reuven. Expropriate it and then let Reuven, whose promissory note is dated after
yours, come and expropriate the field from me." Therefore, if Reuven and
Shimon write each other a document granting power of attorney, they may
expropriate a field that was sold after lyyar using both vantage points.
Similar laws apply if Levi sold one field
twice, composing separate deeds of sale for Reuven and for Shimon, with one
dated on the first of Nissan and one Nissan, without specifying a day.
Chapter 21
Halacha 1
When a creditor expropriates a field, he
may also expropriate the increase in value that the purchaser brings about
within the field. This applies whether the field increases in value because of
an investment, or it increases in value as a matter of course.
There is, however, a difference between
the two instances. If it increases in value as a matter of course, the creditor
may expropriate the entire increase in value. If it increased in value because
of an investment, the creditor may expropriate only half the increase.
What is implied? Reuven was owed a debt
of 200 zuz by Shimon. Shimon sold a field to Levi for a maneh. Levi made an
investment in the field and caused its value to increase and it is now worth
200. When Reuven expropriates it from Levi, he expropriates it from him for 100
and also the 50 that constitutes half the increase of value. If it increased in
value on its own accord - e.g., the price rose or trees grew - he can
expropriate the entire amount.
Great sages issued a ruling stating that
a purchaser should not have lesser legal power than a person who occupies a
field belonging to a colleague without permission, in which instance the
increase in the field's value is appraised, and the squatter is given the
weaker position. Therefore, if the field increased 100 zuz in value and Levi
spent 50, Levi should receive all of his expenses and half of the increase in
value beyond the expenses. The other half of the increase in value, and the
principal, should be expropriated by the creditor. These are words of logic,
and it is appropriate to rule accordingly. The purchaser then returns and
expropriates the principal from Shimon's property, including even property that
he sold or gave away after the time he sold this field to Levi. The increase in
value that the creditor expropriated from Levi, the purchaser - whether half
the increase in value or the entire increase - Levi may then expropriate only
from property in the possession of Shimon. For it is an enactment instituted
for the sake of society not to expropriate a property's increase in value, nor
produce eaten by a thief, nor the sustenance given a widow and the deceased's
daughters from property that has been sold. The rationale is that these are
matters that have no limit. And it is one of the leniencies associated with a
ketubah that a woman is not granted the opportunity of expropriating the money
due her by virtue of her ketubah from a property's increase in value.
Why is a creditor able to expropriate
only half the increase of value that comes after the investment was made?
Because the increase in value comes after Shimon, the original owner borrowed
money from Reuven and sold the property to Levi. Thus, Reuven and Levi can be
considered to be two creditors of Shimon's and the increase in the value of the
field as an increase in the value of his property that came after he borrowed
from both of them. In such an instance, they divide the increase equally, as we
have explained. Accordingly, the following rules apply in the ensuing
circumstance. Reuven borrowed a maneh from Shimon, and in the promissory note
wrote that he is extending the lien to: "the property that I will acquire
in the future." He then borrowed 200 zuz from Levi, and in the promissory
note wrote that he is extending the lien to: "the property that I will
acquire in the future." He then purchased a field and sold it to Yehudah
for 150 zuz. Yehudah made an investment and caused its value to increase, and
ultimately it was worth 300 zuz. Shimon and Levi expropriate the principal and divide
it equally. Thus, each receives 75 zuz.
The three - Shimon, Levi and Yehudah -
then divide the 150 zuz of the field's increase in value according to the
principles that we explained. Thus, Shimon expropriates the complete payment of
the maneh owed him from this field. Levi expropriates 137 1/2, and Yehudah
receives 62 1/2 from the field's increase in value. They should divide the
increase in value in this manner. These principles apply even if there are 100
creditors.
Halacha 2
All of the produce that the purchaser
consumed, however, is not expropriated from him. The produce that is attached
to the land, by contrast, including even the produce that no longer needs the
nurture of the land - e.g., grapes that are ready to be harvested - may be
expropriated by a creditor in the same way as he expropriates the property's
increase in value.
Halacha 3
When the recipient of a present invests
in it and causes its value to increase, the creditor may not expropriate any of
its increase in value. Instead, we evaluate its worth at the time the present
was given and allow him to expropriate that amount. If, however, it increases
in value as a matter of course, the creditor may expropriate the entire field.
If the person giving the present accepts responsibility for it, the creditor
may expropriate the increase in value from this field just as he would if it
were in the possession of a purchaser.
Why is a creditor given the right to
expropriate half of a property's increase in value from a purchaser, but not
from a person who receives a present? Because the seller of the property wrote
to the purchaser in the deed of sale: "I am obligated to you for the
principal, the labor you invest in it, and the increase in value that you will
bring to it. I take responsibility for everything." The purchaser accepted
this stipulation. For the purchaser took possession of the field on the
condition that if the increase in the value of the field was expropriated from
him, he would seek recompense from the seller. Even if this stipulation was not
written in the deed of sale, it is a matter of public knowledge that this is
the law governing the seller's responsibility to the purchaser. With regard to
a present, by contrast, this stipulation does not apply. Hence, a creditor may
not expropriate any increase in value that the recipient of a present brought
about through investment.
Halacha 4
Similarly, if orphans who inherit an
estate increase its value, a creditor of their father may not expropriate any
of its increase in value. If, however, the property increases in value as a
matter of course, he may expropriate the entire increase.
5. The following laws apply when a
creditor expropriates property for a debt owed him from a purchaser from the
principal and half of the increase in the property's value. We then consider
what remains of the landed property. If the land that remains would be of value
to the purchaser - e.g., in a field, an area where nine kabbin of grain could
be sown, in a garden, an area where half a kab of vegetables could be sown -
the creditor and the purchaser should become partners with regard to the land.
If the property is not large enough to be divided in a manner that the smaller
portion of sufficient size would be referred to as a field or as a garden, the
creditor should reimburse the purchaser financially for the increase in the value
of the field, as is due him.
Halacha 6
The following rules apply when a field
was designated as an ipotiki. The creditor may expropriate the entire field. We
consider the half of the field's increase in value which must be repaid to the
purchaser. If half of the increase in value exceeds the purchaser's investment,
he should collect the amount he invested from the creditor. He is given only
this amount, because the creditor can tell him: "It is my field that
increased in value." He should collect the remainder of the money due him
from the field's increase in value from the seller.
If half of the field's increase in value
is less than the purchaser's investment, the purchaser should be reimbursed by
the person who expropriated the field for only half of the field's increase in
value. He then collects from the seller the other half of the field's increase
in value.
Halacha 7
When a creditor comes to expropriate
property from heirs, and the heirs claim: "We caused the value of the
property to increase," but the creditor claims: "Perhaps it was your
father who caused the property to increase in value," the burden of proof
is on the heirs.
If the heirs bring proof that they
increased the value of the property, we evaluate the increase and their
expenses. They receive the lesser of the two, and they are given this amount in
money.
When does the above apply? When the field
was designated an ipotiki. If, however, it was not designated an ipotiki, if
the heirs desire, they have the right to pay the creditor the debt he is owed
and absolve his claim. Or if they desire, they may take a share of the land
that is equivalent to the value of the increase they brought to the value of
the property.
---
Hayom Yom
Tuesday Kislev
29, Fifth Day of Chanuka 5703
Torah lessons: Chumash: Mikeitz, Shlishi with Rashi.
Tehillim: 140-150.
Tanya: Ch. 4. In addition (p. 13)...(that
he violates). (p. 13).
The sins of Israel in the time of the
Greeks were: Fraternizing with the Greeks, studying their culture, profaning
Shabbat and Holy Days, eating t'reifa and neglecting Jewish tahara.1 The
punishment-tribulation was the spiritual destruction2 of the Sanctuary, death,
and slavery in exile. Through teshuva3 and mesirat nefesh,4 that great,
miraculous Divine salvation - the miracle of Chanuka - came about.
FOOTNOTES
1. Purity.
The term "family purity" (for taharat hamishpacha) describes Torah
laws concerning marriage, particularly mikva, and all observances related to
family sanctity. See Sh'vat 21; Nissan 10.
2. The
defilement of the Sanctuary, its altar, and the famous cruses of oil. The
physical destruction centuries later was by the Romans.
3. "Return,"
or "repentance," a frequent theme in Torah and Chassidus. See for
example Tishrei 3 to 8.
4. Total
devotion, to the point of martyrdom.
---
Daily Thought:
Beyond Faith & Intellect
Intellect is inadequate because not all
things can be explained. Intellect needs faith.
Faith is impotent because it remains
forever obscure. Faith needs intellect.
But they are opposites, as contradictory
as being and not being: Faith accepts; Intellect questions. Faith surrenders;
Intellect struggles.
Miraculously, there is a power that can
join them in harmony, and it is called wisdom: The capacity to see the truth as
it is and the quietness to allow it entry without loss.
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